Brothers: Bobby Bare and his old partner in crime, Shel Silverstein

What do you know the frog asked the toad. I could be your brother the toad said. Yeah but I'm greener. But I can jump higher. Even if that were true so what we're to small to play basketball. That may be so but I can catch a fly that's a little higher in the air. Even if that were true I could cut your throat and wait for the fly to fly a little lower. That's cold man. It's a cold world bud the frog said and hopped away. Hey, the toad yelled. The frog looked back. Or we could just be friends the toad teased. The frog laughed, yeah I guess we could try that but I'd watch your back.

Presence

Late one night between yesterday and the middle of next week
You were drinking wine
Whiskey for me
A sad soulful song on the broken radio (Waylon Jennings)
The Belle Of The Ball I think
A star fell into the lake
The moment passed
Quickly
Effortlessly
Inevitably
As water through our cupped hands
I reached for your knee
You smiled
The lake was still as cement
The song ended
The star splashed
I heard something flapping
A faint smell of shit returned (dog probably)
We were drunk
Laughing at something you said
We wasted a beautiful moment (It wasn't obvious) (I'll give you that)
We didn't think they would be so few and far between and never noticed its absence

Crazy Wind

Chasing a feeling
Through the city
Caught at a railroad crossing
Train going about two miles an hour
Grabbed a book out of a bag
Smoked a couple cigarettes
Train stopped
Started
Going backwards
Feeling was getting away
Ambling down Seventh Avenue
Looking for a
Crack
Street
Vendor
Got out of the car
Walked around the train
By that time the feeling was long gone
That's not such a bad thing
About a block from my driveway
Caught a whiff of something strange
Spun around
Started looking again

Walked past the guy playing electric guitar
With his hat on the sidewalk
In front of a record store
A black dude was selling poems
Gave him a dollar
He handed me a poem on a green sheet of paper
Signed William Wonderful

The moonlight fades like a light switch dimmer I take you home down a back road past the lake we stop and share a cigarette under a tree you smile and say I wish this crazy wind would just blow me away to where I ask anywhere but here you say away from me I think you take my hand and we watch a bird fight a snake while the sun rises over the lake you squeeze my hand and say don't be sad but that's unrealistic

Precipice

I'm on the edge
Of a cliff
Or a bridge
Or the roof of a five story apartment building
Gazing
At a river
Or a parking lot
Or the top of a tree
Talking to myself
About basketball
Or where I've been
Or a book I've just read
Wondering
What's next
Or just happened
Or isn't ever going to
I know
I won't jump
Or stumble
Or howl at the full moon like a horny old wolf
I might walk
To a bar
Or a theater
Or a field of daisies
And watch the sun
Rise
Or fall
Or just hang like a great big ball
I can't
Catch
Or throw
Or hit over a fence
That might represent
The border between was and is
Or a long line of things I almost did
Or something I never want to do again

Semi-Related

If I was sorry
I would say
I'm sorry
And you aren't crazy
So quit acting
Like you are

The morning you left
The birds wouldn't shut up
And I ran out of cigarettes
Before I passed out

I grabbed all the courage
Laying around

Found some change I knew
Was under the cushions of my couch

Walked about six blocks
To the liquor store

Walked back with
Thirteen cents and two packs

Found the bottle I stashed
In the shed and spent

The rest of the day
Thinking about the shit

I could have done and
Decided it makes no difference

No matter what the sages say
Around nightfall

Important!

If the flag is blowing
Left to right keep going

Until you hit the four way stop sign
At the edge of the woods

Head south
Toward the lake

Stop a second
Before the road ends

Get out of the car
Draw a circle in the dirt

Stand in the circle and await
Further instructions

If you ever want to
See me again

Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way

After taking delivery of the finest grade
Coca-Cola in Nashville
You do the vocals for Amanda
Eight hours of pinball with Tompall in the cafe on the corner.
He's drinking Jack and telling you about touring with Marty
You tell him a couple about Buddy
Tilt and recite a couple lines of a poem you memorized in high school
That semi-relates to tilting the pinball machine on the brink of a free game.
What did I just say you ask?
Kris walks in says where the hell you been and hands you a tape.
You head back to Tompall's studio and listen to Kris's song
Pick up your Telecaster
Catch it and ask Tompall to roll some tape.
Jessie calls and asks if you are coming home today.
You tell her about the song you're working on.
She asks about Amanda.
You say it's done
Tell Tompall you have to get going
Get sidetracked
By another song
Back to the cafe
Play some more pinball.
Kris drops by and says what did you think?
You take him back to the studio
Listen to the demo and a couple more
Do the rest of the blow with Kris and Hank
Who drops by to see if you have any
Shit to spare
You say we use it all around here for better or worse Hoss.

A Song For My Love

The road dead ends
At a lake
If I had a boat
I could get to you
I think
You are somewhere
I could find
Above the sunset
I sense your reflection
On the water
I hear a song
You'd sing
While you brushed
Your hair
Floating over the trees
Through fog
I follow smoke
And a drum
To a glass house
Above a creek
And wait
For the come what may
To come